Container vacuumizing and closing apparatus



FeB. 1, 1944; F. J. OYBRIEN 2,340,341,

CONTAINER VACUUMIZING AND CLOSING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 25, 1940 2Sheets-Sheet 1 I 15 .z 16 am f? 5 FL 1 LE 55555; 3. f0 J0 I2 I 127 40 w+2 0 ("I "I I 2] rm i!!! 55 r ii? Q [:5 a) 22 0 an; a \J 0 M 40 W440 a oN 3," L Q Q F. J. OBRIEN 2,340,341 CONTAINER VACUUMIZING AND CLOSINGAPPARATUS Feb. 1, 1944.

.2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 25, 1940 Fig.2; A

seam/n 9 mecham/sm N and Feb. 1, 1944 2,340,341

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2.340.341 r com-amen vacuums AND CLOSINGarr-snares Frank .I. O'Brien. Pelham, N. Y., assignor to Conental CanCompany, Inc., New York. N. Y., a corporation or New York ApplicationNovember 25, 1940, Serial No. 367.148

2 Claims. (Cl. 226-82) The invention relates generally to apparatusvacuumizing chambers of an apparatus embodyior closely filled containersand primarily seeks ing the invention. to provide a novel apparatus fordrawing a vac-. Figure 2 is a i'ragmentary vertical cross section um inthe containers bei'ore sealing the same. taken on the line 2-2 on 1.

Apparatus for sealing filled containers in a igure 3 is a fragmentaryvertical cross section vacuum have been provided heretofore, but suchtaken a one f he e min s ations. apparatus has been limited ineiilciency because Figure 4 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional ofemploying container introducing media imview illustrating one of thepocketed rotary valves proper in design and arrangement, and faulty indisposed with two or its diametrically opposite that it served to admitlarge quantities of air at pockets in registry with the cross connectionatmospheric pressure and made it ditlicult and pip ng.

vacuum in the container sealing chamber. The herein made of oneembodiment of the invention, present invention seeks to provide anapparatus there is included a main housing or casing I inin which theseobjectionable conditions are nd d to excl e all at a m spheric P sureand avoided, to provide a filled container vacuumizing cham- In its moredetailed nature, the invention re- 9 Within w i h ny suitable containerclosdes in the provision or a novel container vaci 1' aling m h ismgenerally desiana ed 1 uumjzjng and closing apparatus wherein 1 proismounted, and a pre-vacuumizing chamber I vided a container closing orsealing means, a leading toward id vacuumizing chamber. The vacuumjzjngchamber in which t in m a container closing mechanism 1 preferably takesfunctions, a pre-vacuumlzjng chamber leading t the form of a doubleseaming mechanism such the vacuumizing chamber,apocketed rotary valve asthat isc o d in the U. S. Letters Patent to forming a seal between saidchambers and eiiec- Nelsen Troyer ,983,252, issued on Dec. 27, 1934,tive to deliver pre-vacuumized containers to the as previously stat d,ny rm oi. vacuumized container sealing chamber and also to delivercontainer sealing means can be employed within sealed containerstherefrom, and a pocketed rothe c pe of the present invention. taryvalve sealing the entrance into the pre- A rotary Valve as ng 8 isdisposed between or vacuumizing chamber and efl'ectlve to deliver conatthe t re of the pre-vacuumizing chamber miners to the pre..va,cuumjzjngchamber and l 8 and the vacuumizing chamber 6, and a similar to deliversealed containers therefrom. rotaryvalve casing I0 is disposed at theentrance Another object of the invention is to provide into thepre-vacuumizing chamber 8. The casan apparatus of the character statedembodying houses a ro y valve H equipped with ,a separate pumps forevacuating the individual pl r lity of equidistantly spaced peripheralp0ck vacuumizing and pre-vacuumizing chambers, 1 ets l2, and a similarrotary valve l3 equipped with said pumps being effective to provide aslightly peripheral pockets I4 is mounted in the valve caslower degreeor vacuum in the pre-vacuumizing ing 9. The valve l l serve to a th c br ham e chamber than in the vacuumizing chamber. I against ingress orair at atmospheric pressure Another object of the invention is toprovide from without the casing i, and the val l3 serves an pp r thecharacter statedinwhich D- to seal the chambers I and 8 against tree coposite sides of the respective rotary sealing valves mum au one t the mare cross-connected so that container discharging containers whichpockets at one side of the valves will cross-connect v covers looselywith container inieeding pockets at opposite sides are deuvered/ to theand tend to partially evacuate said cross-conf nected containerinfeeding Pockets. figz jg j fmz g g i at With the above and otherobjects in view that al on r e 3118' ed are ed a a e iv y way n into thepath oi movewill hereinafter appear, the nature of the invenm t I t tionwill be more fully understood by follow n en 0 mung whim delivers themthe detailed description, the appended claims, go by into the "calmWcketi the and the several views illustrated in the accomvalve The Valvell thus s rially delivers panymg drawings. filled containers it into theapparatus for being In the drawings: Fjgure 1 i a diagrammatichorizontal ti n l at atmospheric pressure other than the relatively wtaken through the pre-vacuumizing and as small amount which surrounds tcontainers in the restricted peripheral pockets 1: which theysubstantially fill.

As each filled container I8 is delivered inside the pre-vacuumlzingchamber 8, it is stripped from the respective valve pocket by astripping rotor l9 and delivered onto a guide or feed way 20 along'whichit is carried by a suitable conveyor 2|. Containers fed along on theconveyor 2| are individually picked up by the timing rotor 22 anddelivered into the receiving pockets M in the rotary valve l3. The valvel3 seals the passageway between the pre-vacuumizing chamber 8 and thevacuumizing chamber 6 and permits a carrying over into the vacuumizlngchamber 6 of only a very small portion of the rarifled atmosphere of thepre-vacuumizing chamber 8 which surrounds the containers in the pocketsH of the valve 13 by which said containers are delivered to saidvacuumizlng chamber.

As each container is is delivered into the vacuumizlng chamber 6 it isstripped from the respective valve pocket M by a stripping rotor 23 andpresented in a feed way or guide 24 in which it is conveyed by asuitable transfer wheel 25 and delivered thereby to another transferwheel 28 which feeds it over a feed way or guide 21 into a receivingpocket of a closing turret 28. The closing turret is moved to presentthe containers at first and second operation seaming stationsrespectively designated 29 and 30 for having the covers or end closuresdouble seam secured onto the containers.

After the containers have been pre-vacuulmized in the chamber 8,vacuumized in the chamber 6, and sealed at the stations 29 and 30 in themanner hereinbefore described, they are stripped from the closing turret28 by a stripping and timing star 31 which cooperates with a guideway 32in again delivering said containers into the pockets l4 of the valve l3.

The sealed containers are thus returned from the vacuumizlng chamber 6to the pre-vacuumizing chamber 8 by the valve 13, a suitable strippingrotor 33 serving to strip the sealed containers from the valve pocketsand deliver them into a receiving guide way 34 along which they areconveyed, by a suitable conveyor 35, through the pre-vacuumizing chamber8 toward the valve ll.

As the sealed containers again approach the valve ll they are picked upby a timing rotor 36 and moved into the receiving pockets I2 in saidvalve. The sealed containers are stripped from the pockets of the valveII by a stripping rotor 31 which delivers them to a guideway 38 to becarried off on any suitable feed-away conveyor 39.

It will be observed by reference to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings thatthe opposite sides of each of the valve casings 9 and III arecross-connected, as at 40, so that as each in-feeding valve pocketregisters with the cross-connecting piping 40 at one side of the valveit will be brought into open communication with an out-feeding pocket atthe opposite side of the valve (see Figures 2 and 4), and the purpose ofthis cross-connecting of pockets will be described later.

A vacuum pump 4| is connected through a line 42 with the vacuumizlngchamber 6, and a vacuum pump 43 is connected by a line 44 with thepre-vacuumizing chamber 8. The pump 4! is effective to draw a 29 vacuumin the vacuumizlng chamber 6, and the pump 43 is effective to draw avacuum of slightly lesser degree, namely, 27 at the pre-vacuumlzingchamber 8. Because of the differential in pressures in the respectivechambers 6 and 8, and between the pre-vacuumizing chamber 8 andatmosphere in advance of the valve l I, it will be obvious that a givenpocket of either of the valves I I and I3 at the out-feeding sidethereof, while passing the respective opening in the cross-connectionpiping 40, will contain therein a pressure less than the pressure in thepocket communicating with the piping 40 at the opposite side of the samevalve. Thus as each valve pocket at the out-feeding side of a givenvalve passes the respective cross-connection piping 40 it will draw airfrom and tend to partially evacuate said opposite valve pocket.

By positioning the valves II and 13 in tandem in the manner illustratedin Figure l, and by causing each thereof to simultaneously feed filledcontainers into and sealed containers from the respective chambers 8 and6, means is not only provided for sealing the passageways fromatmosphere and from each other in a manner for effecting a veryefilcient'two stage vacuumizlng of the containers, but since the valvepockets at the entrance into and discharge from each valve casing aresubstantially filled by in-feeding and out-feeding containers, verylittle interchange ol unbalanced pressures is permitted and the desiredvacuum volumes in the respective chambers 8 and 6 is easily maintained.

It is known that to exhaust or attenuate one cubic foot of air fromatmospheric pressure to 27" of vacuum, the air would have to be expandedto ten times its volume, whereas to exhaust or attenuate one cubic footof air to 29 of vacuum, the air would have to be expanded sixty times.The advantage of vacuumizlng the containers in two separate stages inthe chambers 8 and 6 by vacuum treatmentsin distinct, successivelyincreasing degrees, each vacuum stage being attained by use of adistinct pump, will be obvious. By use of the separate pump 43 and theattainment of a 2'7 vacuum therewith, ninetenths of the air is exhaustedat the 27" .vacuum in the chamber 8, leaving only one-tenth of the airto be exhausted in the main vacuum chamher 6 in order to reach the 29 ofvacuum desired in said chamber 6. Therefore, with the specificarrangement of parts illustrated in Fi ure 1, employing the two pumps 43and 4|, the pumps have a combined capacity of only onequarter of whatwould be required to initially provide a vacuum of 29 in a singlechamber and by use of a single pump.

No attempt is made herein to illustrate in detail the method ofmounting, or the driving connections for, th rotary valves, theconveyors, or the timing and transfer rollers, because all Of theseparts, in structure and mounting, are conventional and well known, andit is considered unnecessary to encumber this disclosure with specificillustration and description thereof.

It is of course to be understood that the details of structure andarrangement of parts may be variously changed and modified withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of my invention.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the character described a container pre-vacuumizingchamber, a container vacuumizing and closing chamber having a vacuumtherein higher than the vacuum obtaining in said pre-vacuumizing chamberand being disposed close to said pre-vacuumizing chamber and closedagainst ingress of outside air and also against infeeding and outfeedingor containers except through said rare-vacuumizlng chamber,

container closing means in said vacuumizins and closing chamber, asingle rotary pocketed valve for feeding unclosed containers into andclosed containers from the pre-vacuumizing chamber, means for feedingunclosed containers to said valve, means for feeding closed containersfrom said valve, a second single rotary pocketed valve for feedingunclosed containers from the prevacuumizing chamber to the vacuumizingand closing chamber and closed containers from the vacuumizing andclosing chamber back into said pre-vacuumizing chamber, means for movingthe unclosed containers from said second valve to the closing means andclosed containers from the closing means back to said second valve, andmeans for moving unclosed containers from the first mentioned valve tosaid second valve and closed containers from said second valve to said 3first mentioned valve through said pre-vacuumizing chamber.

2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 in whichthere is included, anindividual pacity for drawing a, vacuum of approximately twenty-seveninches in said pre-vacuumizing chamber, and a second individual pump ofa capacity for drawing a vacuum oi. approximately twenty-nine and a halfinches in the vacuumizingand closing chamber, the combined capacity ofsaid two pumps being only a fraction of the capacity necessary in asingle pump capable of evacuating a chamber comparable to saidvacuumizing and closing chamber to an extent sutficient to providetherein a vacuum of approximately twenty nine and one halt inches.

FRANK J. O'BRIEN.

pump of a can--

